MRMC CEO: We are adjusting staffing

Friday

Aug 2, 2013 at 10:24 AM

Drew Van DykeMMI Editor

According to Moberly Regional Medical Center CEO Chris Jones, the city’s hospital adjusts its staffing on a regular basis.

Such was noted in response to questions posed by the MMI concerning recent rumors of current and upcoming cuts to staffing hours and positions at the hospital due to government regulation and cost issues.

While Jones would not give specific numbers pertaining to adjustments at the Moberly hospital in either refutal or confirmation of the posed questions, he did release a statement on the matter last Thursday (July 25).

This low patient volume, Jones said, when paired up with “less government reimbursement, more government regulations, rising operating costs, increasing uncompensated care and the need to invest in technology” are creating “a difficult operating environment” at MRMC.

Worth noting, back in mid-June, the nearby University of Missouri Health Care system announced that it would be cutting positions or hours for 35 current employees, while eliminating 90 unfilled jobs throughout the current year, all due to federal health care payment cuts and Missouri’s legislative inability to expand Medicaid eligibility.

“Moberly Regional Medical Center regularly adjusts our staffing to be in line with the number of patients in our care,” Jones said.

When questioned as to the specifics of this “staffing to volume” ratio, Jones explained on Aug. 1:

“Staffing is a complex and fluid part of managing our hospital’s day-to-day operations. Minimum staffing levels are always maintained to provide healthcare services 24/7. Beyond that, we consider many factors, including the number of patients and the conditions we are treating, which fluctuates throughout each day.”